Sheet-separating attachment



Aug. 19,- 1924. 1,505,349

F. N. JQHNSON ET AL SHEET SEPARATING ATTACHMENT Filed April 2, 1-923 gnuenlovf FAA/M 0 Patented Aug. 19, 1924.

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aflessreeer vs TAQHMENT- Application filed April 2, 1923. SeriatNo.629,289

1 0 all whom it may concern;

Be it known that we, F-RED;.N.' JQHNSON and VVILLIAM P. Jo nson,citizens ofthe United States ofAmerica, residing atDallas, in the countyof Dallas and. State .of Texas, have invented certainnew and'use fulImprovements in Sheet-Separating Attachments, of which thefollowin'g isa specification.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in sheetseparating attachments.

In connection with printing presses it is customary to use automaticdevices for feeding the sheets of paper to: the press. In a particulartype of press the sheets are stacked horizontally in a vertical pile ina box or other holder. At each operation the top sheet is lifted bysuction cups mounted on a carrier which feeds said sheet to the press.It frequently occurs that one or more underlying sheets adhere to thetop sheet and are lifted therewith, thus causing one or more sheets topass through the press unprinted or becoming the means of other trouble.Certain attempts have been made to separate sheets, but such effortshave resulted in built-in complicated devices requiring either a changein the structure of the paper box or feeding means.

The object of this invention is primarilyto provide an attachment whichmay be se-. cured to the front stock plate or other wall of the sheetholder of a press without altering or substituting any part of thefeeder or press. I Y

A further object is to provide an attach ment having a wiping fingerhaving a roughened face which is presented to the edge of the sheet asthe same is lifted, whereby said edge is wiped over said face and anyadhering sheets thus dislodged from the lifted sheet.

Another object is to provide an attachment having a displaceable fingerprovided with a roughened face and means for displacing the finger sothat it overhangs the stack of sheets, thus providing an adjustment tosuit sheets of various weights and thickness.

A construction designed to carry out the invention together with otherfeatures will be hereinafter described.

vention is shown. and wherein:

Fig. 1 isanisometric view of a sheet holder.equipped-with attachmentsmade in accordance with the invention,

Fig.. 2 (is a front elevation of one of the attachments,

Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same, and

Fig. .4 is an enlarged sectional detail show ingthe finger displacingvmeans.

In the drawings the numeral 10' designates a sheet holder having a.front stock plate 11 and which. is of the usual construction and fromwhich sheets are lifted by suction cup feeder (not shown).

A plurality of attachments each comprising a vertical plate 12 formed ofsheet steel or other suitable metal, are provided. Each plate has anupstanding finger 13 slit from its upper central portion. The upper faceof the finger is provided with serrations 14; or

otherwise roughened in any suitable manner.

On each side of the linger downwardly bent hooks or clips 16 depend fromthe top of the plate and overhang the back thereof on eachside of thefinger. The lower end of each hook may be rolled to form a bead 15.

In using the attachment a pair are employed and each is mounted on theplate 11.

against the inner side of the stock plate' Thestock of sheets is placedin the holder and againstthe faces of the attachment plates 12. As theserrations 14 are confined to the upper ends of the fingers 13, saidserra tions will be above the top sheet. As is shown in Figs. 3 and'tthe serrations project from the face of the attachment plates 12 andoverhang the edges of th'e'sheets. When the top sheet islifted its edgecontiguous to the attachments is'wiped upwardly of the fingers 13 andovert-he serrations 14, whereby I any under sheets adhering to the topsheet Will be detached and will fall back into the holder.

WVhen light weight sheets are handled the separation is more difficultand therefore more pressure must be exerted against the edge of thelifted sheets by the fingers to effect a separation. This isaccomplished by displacing the fingers 13 inwardly so as to overhang thepile of sheets. To effect this set screws 17 are threaded throughapertures 18 in the plate 11 and impinge the rear side of the fingers,whereby each finger is bent outwardly for the attachment plate 12, as isshown in Fig. i. A lock nut 19 on each screw engages the outer face ofthe plate 11 and fastens the screw and the finger in place. It isobvious that for very thinpaper, such as French folio, onion skin andthe like, a greater projection of the fingers is required than whereheavier sheets, such as letterheads, inserts and the like are fed. Thescrews 17 enable minute adjustments and while the attachments may beused without the screws, by bending or wedging the fingers, the screwsform a more desirable way.

Various changes may be made as for instance the means of securing theattachments to the stock plate 11 or the roughening of the faces of thefingers, all within the scope of the appended claims. The making and useof a single attachment is also within the province of the invention.

What we claim, is:

1. A sheet separating printing devices comprising a plate, clownturnedhooks at the upper end of the plate, a finger slit from the platebetween the hooks and having a roughened face, and a set screw fordisplacing the finger from the plate.

2. A sheet separating attachment for printing presses comprising anupright plate free for insertion downwardly on the stock plate of asheet holder, downwardly bent hooks on each sideof the top of the platefor engaging over and clipping the back of the stock plate, and anupwardly directed separating finger extending from the plate between thehooks and having a roughened face, said plate being removable upwardly.

In testimony whereof we affix our signatures.

FRED N; JOHNSON. WILLIAM P. JOHNSON attachment for

